In an unprecedented move, Blue Nile has finally seen the value of using actual diamond images and videos to enhance their online diamond search! Savvy consumers can now utilize Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool to search for diamonds that have a 360 degree magnified HD video feature.

How To Use Blue Nile’s Diamond Visualization Tool

Click on ‘360 View Available’ to see only diamonds that have a corresponding image/video

Blue Nile’s Diamond Visualization feature allows consumers to search for diamonds with a corresponding magnified HD video and image. In order to utilize this feature, be sure to check the ‘360 view available’ box which is under the ‘view filters’ blue tab. Keep in mind that most diamonds are round at this time, but more images will be added for all diamond shapes.

Why Is Blue Nile’s Diamond Visualization Tool Helpful?

The ability to ‘see’ a diamond prior to purchase is paramount. It is simply a necessity. With magnified diamond images and videos, we can easily confirm cut grade, brilliance/contrast and scintillation (aka sparkle which is a dynamic characteristic), clarity grade and visible imperfections, depth of color, and overall ‘personality’ of a given stone. It is still somewhat mind boggling to me that a consumer would spend thousands on a diamond without actually seeing it first – but luckily those days are soon to be obsolete as any good diamond retailer is now adopting current technology to showcase actual images/videos of their inventory.

However, we must be realistic in that most people with access to diamond images and videos still have difficulty navigating what they are actually seeing. Without a road map with defined locations, even seeing a picture will do little to assist in their evaluation process. So, let’s dig a little deeper to see how Blue Nile’s Diamond Visualization tool can help the common consumer…

Cut Grade – Generally speaking, Blue Nile’s ‘Signature’ line of diamonds offer the best in terms of white light brilliance and symmetrical dark contrast areas which result in a dynamic effect of overall sparkle and ‘scintillation‘. Though some of their diamonds aren’t the perfect super-ideal hearts and arrow diamonds that dominate the likes of Brian Gavin Diamonds, however Blue Nile’s ‘Signature’ line has improved over the years and offers ideal cut diamonds that rank in the upper 10% of all diamonds.

Sparkle – Seeing a diamond move under a light source tells us how much or little ‘sparkle’ it has. Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool allows for the consumer to pause the image, view frame by frame, or view as a 360 degree video. The best diamonds show lots of white light reflection (brilliance), sparkle (flash and fire) across the full crown of the stone; taking full advantage of light from many different sources, under a broad range of movement, and show minimal underperforming (dead and dark) areas.

Clarity Grade – Many consumers get overly caught up in clarity grade thinking that a diamond that is VVS or higher is preferable. However, it must be restated that clarity is merely a rarity factor and not in itself a characteristic of beauty. There are many examples here on ODBA where a consumer saves considerable cash on a larger carat weight diamond while choosing a perfectly eye-clean stone. Now that Blue Nile has their 360 diamond visualization tool available, we can confidently search for diamonds that are as low as SI2 clarity grade as long as the inclusions/blemishes don’t affect overall translucency or affect the integrity of the stone. Here are two examples:

1.71ct D SI1 Blue Nile ‘Signature’ diamond that is prongable. See red arrow for dark crystal that can easily be covered under a jewelry prong when set in setting. This diamond offers great value without having to overpay for a super high clarity grade. However, we would never have been able to confirm this without the ability to actually ‘see’ the diamond via Blue Nile’s Diamond Visualization tool which offers still images and dynamic HD video.

.91ct G SI1 Blue Nile ‘Signature’ diamond that is perfectly eye-clean. Grade making inclusions are twinning wisps and feather. Another great example of saving cash on a lower clarity diamond that has an ideal cut and offers beautiful sparkle without having super high clarity grade. Again, without the ability to use Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool, this would not have been possible.

Color – Color is most easily seen when looking at a diamond from it’s profile (side view) and not easily detected from the crown view. This is definitely the case with ideal cut diamonds that are cut to maximize light reflection and brilliance thus making it very difficult to detect any color saturation from this perspective. However, for those that are overly discriminating, the 360 degree video feature on Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool allows for the consumer to view the diamond from all angles and therefore offers more insight into how much color saturation there is. Keep in mind that diamonds can have three different tones of body color including the most popular ‘yellow’, and also brown and gray.Diamond Personality – Perhaps the greatest reason for utilizing Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool is simply the ability to view the diamond and gain a quick first impression of it’s overall ‘personality’ and life.

Remember that diamonds will be worn as jewelry and you or your loved one will be the primary appreciator of it’s overall beauty and symbolism. You will not have a report attached to the diamond for all to see it’s specs of carat weight, color, clarity or cut grade. Therefore, choose a diamond that ‘speaks’ to you. This is especially the case with fancy cut diamonds (anything other than round brilliant) which have less conformity and offer greater variance in shape outline, pavilion faceting, contrast patterns, white light reflection and overall sparkle.

In many cases, beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder and one should keep this in mind when searching for their perfect diamond!

I’m so pleased to see that Blue Nile is yet again reinventing themselves and adopting technology that enhances their product offerings and provides greater security, transparency, convenience and economical advantage to the consumer!

Blue Nile’s diamond visualization tool offers consumers so many advantages that making shopping for diamonds online an obvious advantage to old school diamond district or brick and mortar shopping. Consumers can search through thousands of diamonds in the comfort of their own home without feeling the stress or pressure from sales assistants or be confined to a store’s small diamond inventory. For those that are looking for financing options, Blue Nile’s credit card offers yet another reason to go with the biggest online jewelry retailer.

If you need help shopping for a diamond from Blue Nile, please contact me for personal recommendations and advice. Get the best bang for your buck diamond today!

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